Speech and Language

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Monthly Archives: December 2013

The Museum of Science and Industry is my favorite Chicago museum. They currently have a new Walt Disney exhibit that I look forward to visiting. Going to museums with a family can be pricey, but here are some Free Days for Chicago museums:

When I think of winter, I think of snow, which makes me want to make a snowman. Winter is the perfect time to build a snowman out of actual snow outside, but if you want to stay warm indoors, you can also make a snowman inside! You can use marshmallows, shaving cream, construction paper, cream cheese, or many other foods, gels, or craft materials.

Making a snowman, using whatever materials you decide on, is an excellent language activity. Concepts you can focus on include:

Size concepts

-You can use words like small, medium, and big

-You can also use comparatives (bigger, smaller) and superlatives (biggest, smallest)

Sequencing

-Talk about the activity, as you are completing it and once you have finished, using words including: first, next, and then, last

Bubbles are always fun to blow, but did you know that you can blow bubbles in the winter too? You can use regular bubble solution and a bubble wand to blow icy bubbles outside on a cold day. Alternatively, you can make your own bubble solution with water and liquid soap. A wide range of speech and language areas can be targeted including:

Articulation

-You can work on bilabial sounds (sounds we make with both lips, including p, b, m)

Social Skills

-You can work on turn-taking

Increasing the length of utterances

-You can work on combining words (I want bubbles, more bubbles please)

Basic Concepts

-You can work on concepts including: high, low, up, down, one, many

Oral-Motor Skills

-You can work on lip-rounding while blowing

You can work on all these same concepts with indoor bubbles too, all year round, and talk about how winter bubbles and year-round bubbles are the same and how they differ.